210 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



unmounted are to be sent, in which case such as roses, can have 

 each bloom closely rolled up in a piece of wet cotton wool, and 

 packed together ; but when mounted flowers are being sent a long 

 distance hxj hand, I should not advise its being employed, but if by 

 rail or post and the box receive rough treatment, then over the face 

 of the arrangement by all means place cotton wool. The trouble in- 

 curred will be compensated for by its arrival at its destination in a 

 fresh and perfect condition. According to the season of the year, the 

 flowers for sprays must be selected ; it but would occupy far too 

 much space were I to enumerate those obtainable each month, so 

 on this point my readers must use their own discretion and taste. 



VEGETABLES TO BE SOWN AND PLANTED IN JULY. 



BY WILLIAM COLE, 

 Head Gardener, Ealing Park, W. 



j|URINGr the month of July, a large amount of work of 

 an important character has to be done, for some of the 

 principal winter and spring crops have to be either sown 

 ^gi or planted out from the seed-bed. Amateurs and others 

 who have not had much practical knowledge of crop- 

 ping the kitchen garden, suppose that all the seed sowing and the 

 greater part of the planting-out are done in the months of March 

 and April ; but it is not so, for, although the majority of the prin- 

 cipal crops is then sown or planted, as the case may be, much ia 

 necessarily left to'.be done in the summer season. Indeed, during July, 

 sowings of ten or twelve different vegetables must be made, and nearly 

 the same number of sorts planted out from seed-beds. It will 

 therefore be seen there is plenty to do during the next few weeks, 

 and it may be said with advantage, that all work proper to July 

 should be done in that month. After the end of July, the days 

 shorten at a rapid rate, and the temperature materially declines ; 

 and there is in consequence no chance of crops sown or planted a 

 month or so after the proper date making up for lost time. 



Up to the middle of June, the season has been characterized by 

 drought, and although the crops have not suffered so severely as 

 they did in 1868, peas and other things which require an abundance 

 of moisture to enable them to bring heavy crops to perfection, have 

 not grown so vigorously as we could wish, and the later kinds will 

 not, in all probability, produce such heavy crops as they do under 

 more favourable circumstances. To supply all the crops with water, 

 is, where the kitchen garden is of a rather large size, quite out of 

 the question. Surface waterings are most hurtful, for they tend to 

 draw the fibrous roots towards the surface, and immediately the 

 surface soil becomes dry the crops are placed under conditions less 

 favourable than they would have been had they received no arti- 

 ficial watering. Consequently, when it is considered desirable to 



